Interleaved Communication With Resource Providers and a Home Area Network

ABSTRACT

Systems and methods are disclosed for interleaving communications with a home area network (HAN) and a data network. A gateway device interleaves communications within timeslots of a time slotted channel hopping protocol. A gateway device can be configured to determine, during a first portion of a timeslot, whether the gateway device received a portion of a message from a data network. If the gateway device receives no messages from the data network during the first portion of the timeslot, the gateway device switches to listen for communication from the HAN during a second portion of the timeslot. If the gateway device receives a portion of the message from the HAN, the gateway device continues to receive receives the remainder of the message until one or more trigger conditions that cause the gateway device to listen for communication from the data network.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO PRIORITY APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to U.S. patent application Ser. No.14/830,271 filed on Aug. 19, 2015, which claims priority to U.S.Provisional Application 62/136,028, filed on March 20, 2015, each ofwhich is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

This disclosure relates generally to networking and more particularlyrelates to interleaved communication with a data network and a home areanetwork.

BACKGROUND

A home area network may be used to communicate information betweendevices that consume resources (e.g., electricity) in a home or otherpremises and devices that monitor and/or manage the consumption ofresources. Utility companies and other resource providers may use homearea networks to monitor consumption of the resources by consumers.

A home area network may operate on a separate network from a datanetwork used by the resource provider. A device that providescommunication between a home area network and the data network typicallyrequires multiple radio transceivers that process separate messages fromthe separate networks to send and receive information from both the homearea network and the data network. Accordingly, systems and methods aredesirable for interleaving communication with the home area networks andcommunication with the data network while using a single radiotransceiver.

SUMMARY

Systems and methods are disclosed for interleaving communications with ahome area network (HAN) and communications with a data network. The datanetwork can provide communications between the HAN and resourceproviders that manage the consumption of the HAN resources. An examplesystem includes multiple client devices communicatively coupled to theHAN and a gateway device communicatively coupled to the client devicesor to a HAN controller. The HAN is configured for communicatinginformation regarding a resource consumed at a geographical areaserviced by the home area network. The gateway device is alsocommunicatively coupled to a resource provider server system via thedata network. The data network can be an advanced meteringinfrastructure mesh network, including devices that communicate using atime slotted channel hopping (TSCH) protocol. In some aspects, thegateway device is a node that is part of the data network. The datanetwork can be considered a primary network and the TSCH protocol can beconsidered a primary protocol. The HAN can be considered a secondarynetwork. Devices within the HAN can communicate using a secondaryprotocol, which can include any carrier sense multiple access protocol.

The gateway device is configured to receive interleaved communicationsof the data network and the HAN by switching receive periods between thedata network and the HAN within a single TSCH timeslot. Thecommunications are interleaved among a sequence of TSCH timeslots.During an RX wait period of a TSCH timeslot, the gateway device listensfor communication from the data network and determines if it received,from the data network a portion of a message that requires processing bythe gateway device. If the gateway device did not receive, from the datanetwork, a portion of a message that requires processing by the gatewaydevice during the RX wait period, then, during a second portion of theTSCH timeslot, the gateway device listens for communication from the HANsecondary network. The gateway device determines if it received, fromthe HAN secondary network, a portion of a message that requiresprocessing by the gateway device. If the gateway device determines thatit received, from the HAN secondary network, a portion of a message thatrequires processing by the gateway device, then the gateway devicecontinues to receive the remaining message from the HAN. Messages fromthe HAN can vary in length and can span one or more TSCH timeslots.Certain trigger conditions can cause the gateway device to revert tolistening for communication from the data network. In response to one ormore trigger conditions, the gateway device can again determine if itreceived a message from the data network.

An example of one trigger condition is the beginning of a new TSCHtimeslot. For example, the gateway device may receive a complete messagefrom the HAN, the receipt of the message completing during a portion ofa TSCH timeslot. The start of the RX period of the subsequent timeslotcan act as a trigger condition, causing the gateway device to listen forcommunication from the data network. Another example of a triggercondition is the start of a guaranteed timeslot. For example, thegateway device may be in the process of receiving a message from the HANduring the start of a guaranteed timeslot. The start of the guaranteedtimeslot can act as a trigger condition, causing the gateway device tointerrupt receipt of the message from the HAN to start listening forcommunication from the data network.

These illustrative aspects and features are mentioned not to limit ordefine the invention, but to provide examples to aid understanding ofthe inventive concepts disclosed in this application. Other aspects,advantages, and features of the present invention will become apparentafter review of the entire application.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the presentdisclosure are better understood when the following Detailed Descriptionis read with reference to the accompanying drawings, where:

FIG. 1 is a network diagram illustrating example computing devices forimplementing interleaved media access control features;

FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a gateway deviceconfigured to implement interleaved media access control features;

FIG. 3 is a diagram of an example protocol stack for a single radiotransceiver device that implements multiple media access controlprotocols;

FIG. 4 is a is a diagram illustrating the arrangements of timeslots in atime slotted channel hopping pattern;

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of one of the timeslotsshown in

FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a is a diagram illustrating an example of a timeslot in a timeslotted channel hopping network that is capable of interleaved mediaaccess control features;

FIG. 7 is an alternate diagram illustrating an example of a timeslot ina time slotted channel hopping network that is capable of interleavedmedia access control features;

FIG. 8 is a flowchart depicting a process for implementing interleavedmedia access control features;

FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an example of a sequence of timeslotsand interleaved media access control features being implemented in thetimeslots; and

FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an alternate example of a sequence oftimeslots and interleaved media access control features beingimplemented in the timeslots.

FIG. 11 is a flowchart depicting an alternate process for implementinginterleaved media access control features.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Systems and methods are provided for interleaved communication between adata network and a home area network (HAN). The data network can providecommunication between the HAN and resource providers that monitorconsumption of resources within the HAN, as well as between otherdevices on the data network. Interleaved communication can be achievedby a dual media access control (MAC) gateway device with a single radiotransceiver. The gateway device can communicate with both the datanetwork and the HAN. The data network can be referred to as a primarynetwork and the HAN can be referred to as a secondary network. Accordingto aspects herein, nodes in the data network can communicate using atime synchronized channel hopping (TSCH) protocol, defined by IEEE802.15.4(e). The TSCH protocol uses a series of timeslots and multiplechannel frequencies for communication between devices, including thegateway device, on the data network. In the TSCH protocol, there may beinstances when there is unused time within a timeslot. For example, if anode in the data network listening for communication does not receive acommunication within a predefined period of time, the node may determinethat no communication will be received during that timeslot, leaving theexpiration of the predefined period of time and the beginning of thenext timeslot unused. Communication with both the HAN network and thedata network can occur by switching receive periods in a sequence ofTSCH timeslots, listening for communication from the HAN during unusedportions of TSCH timeslots. Communication from the data network caninclude the receipt of one or more messages from the data network thatthe node is required to process. Similarly, communication from the HANcan include the receipt of one or more messages from the HAN that thenode is required to process. Interleaving communication with the HANduring unused periods of TSCH timeslots can allow communication with theHAN network and the data network using a single radio transceiver.

In an exemplary system, a gateway device is provided for coupling a HANto a data network. For example, a HAN can communicatively link multipledevices associated with a power distribution system in a dwelling, astructure, or other suitable geographical area. As used herein, the term“power distribution system” is used to refer to a group of devices,systems, and/or other suitable infrastructure for transferring powerfrom a power provider, to one or more end users or geographicallocations, such as a dwelling, structure, or other geographical area. AHAN can include a smaller number of network devices (e.g., personalcomputers, mobile computing devices, etc.) than larger data networkssuch as a local area network or a wide area network. In some aspects, aHAN can include low-power network devices that can wirelesslycommunicate with other devices in the HAN. A HAN can be implementedusing any suitable networking protocol. For example, a HAN can beimplemented using any carrier sense multiple access (CSMA) networkingprotocol. Non-limiting examples of suitable networking protocols forimplementing a HAN include ZigBee, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and the like.Non-limiting examples of a HAN include a HomePlug network implementedvia power line communications, a Multimedia over Coax Alliance (“MoCA”)network providing network connectivity between appliances and networkingdevices implemented via coaxial cable, a HomePNA Alliance network, etc.In some aspects, a HAN can be implemented using a TSCH networkingprotocol. The network used within the HAN can be referred to as thesecondary network.

The gateway device can be installed in or near the dwellings orstructures serviced by the HAN and can communicate with the HAN usingthe HAN networking protocol. The gateway device can also communicatewith a data network that may be operating a TSCH networking protocol.The gateway device may include a single wireless transceiver device thatimplements dual MAC interfaces. One of the MAC interfaces is configuredfor communicating with the HAN and the other MAC interface is configuredfor communicating with the data network. A processor within the gatewaydevice can receive communication data from the HAN during the unusedtimeslots of the data network. For example, at the beginning of a TSCHtimeslot, the gateway device may listen for communication from the datanetwork. If the gateway device does not detect an incoming messageduring a first portion of a TSCH timeslot, the gateway device may listenfor messages from the HAN during a second portion of the TSCH timeslot.

As used herein, the term “head-end system” is used to refer to a deviceor group of devices used to provide one or more management functions fora data network or other system including multiple interconnecteddevices. For example, a head-end system for a power distribution systemusing intelligent metering may provide communication and/or datacollection layers between the smart meter infrastructure of the powerdistribution system and one or more higher-level data processing systemsof the power distribution system.

The gateway device thus provides for communication between the HAN andthe data network. In some aspects, the gateway device can be a node thatis part of the data network. Metering devices can report, to the serversystem, amounts of power consumed by client devices within the HAN viathe data network. By switching listen periods for communications withthe data network and communications with the home area network during asequence of TSCH timeslots, the gateway device can effectivelycommunicate between two separate networks using a single radiotransceiver.

These illustrative examples are given to introduce the reader to thegeneral subject matter discussed here and are not intended to limit thescope of the disclosed concepts. The following sections describe variousadditional aspects and examples with reference to the drawings in whichlike numerals indicate like elements.

The features discussed herein are not limited to any particular hardwarearchitecture or configuration. A computing device can include anysuitable arrangement of components that provide a result conditioned onone or more inputs. Suitable computing devices include multipurposemicroprocessor-based computer systems accessing stored software thatprograms or configures the computing system from a general-purposecomputing apparatus to a specialized computing apparatus implementingone or more aspects of the present subject matter. Any suitableprogramming, scripting, or other type of language or combinations oflanguages may be used to implement the teachings contained herein insoftware to be used in programming or configuring a computing device.

Referring now to the drawings, FIG. 1 is a network diagram illustratingan example HAN 100 that can be communicatively coupled to a data network106 via a gateway device 104 a. The HAN 100 can include HAN clientdevices 102 a, 102 b and a HAN controller 103. Along with gateway device104 a, the data network 106 can include multiple nodes in a meshnetwork, shown as gateway devices 104 b-d. Each of the gateway devices104 b-d may be coupled to respective HANs (not shown).

The HAN client devices 102 a, 102 b can include devices used to performone or more applications related to managing, monitoring, or performingfunctions that consume power from a power distribution system associatedwith the HAN 100. Non-limiting examples of such client devices 102 a,102 b include a programmable thermostat for managing power consumption,an in-home display device for displaying information related to powerconsumption and associated billing information for the powerconsumption, and the like. In additional aspects, one or more of the HANclient devices 102 a, 102 b may be a device that consumes power toperform one or more mechanical functions or other functions in additionto analyzing, monitoring, displaying, or otherwise using datacommunicated via the HAN 100. Non-liming examples of such devicesinclude devices that consume power to perform one or more mechanicalfunctions in a dwelling or other structure serviced by the HAN 100, suchas (but not limited to) a water heater, a pool pump, an air conditioner,etc. HAN client devices 102 a, 102 b and HAN controller 103 canwirelessly communicate with each other and with the gateway device 104a. As mentioned above, communication within the HAN 100 and with thegateway device 104 a can occur via any suitable CSMA networkingprotocol.

HAN client devices 102 a, 102 b can be communicatively coupled to a HANcontroller 103. The HAN controller 103 can include any suitablecomputing device configured to communicate data between the HAN 100 andthe gateway device 104 a separate from the HAN 100. The HAN controller103 can include an application processor that can access or include amemory device that stores program code executable by the applicationprocessor. The application processor of the HAN controller 103 cancommunicate power consumption information between HAN client devices 102a, 102 b and the gateway device 104. Multiple HAN controllers 103 canmonitor respective structures that are units of a multi-dwelling unitand that include respective HANs 100. While HAN 100 with HAN controller103 communicatively coupled to HAN client devices 102 a, 102 b is shownfor illustrative purposes, other aspects are also possible. For example,while HAN controller 103 is shown as included in the HAN 100 forillustrative purposes, the HAN controller 103 can also be separate fromthe HAN 100 in alternative aspects. Further, alternative aspects mayinclude a HAN 100 without the use of a HAN controller 103. In thisaspect, HAN client devices 102 a, 102 b communicate directly with thegateway device 104 a without the use of a HAN controller 103. HAN clientdevices 102 a, 102 b can include metering devices for monitoring powerconsumption information and communicate the respective power consumptioninformation directly to the gateway device 104. In some aspects, gatewaydevices 104 a-d can include metering information that monitor, collect,or otherwise manage power consumption information of HAN 100 and HANclient devices 102 a, 102 b.

The gateway device 104 a can communicate the information from the HANcontroller 103 to a server system 108 via a data network 106, which maybe implemented as an Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) mesh networkusing a TSCH protocol. A non-limiting example of a server system 108 isa head-end system for a power distribution network that provides powerto a dwelling, structure, or other geographical area serviced by the HAN100. The gateway device 104 a provides communication between the rest ofthe data network 106 and the HAN 100. The data network 106 can provide acommunication channel between the gateway device 104 and the serversystem 108. A communication channel can include any suitable meanscapable of communicating signals between the HAN gateway device 104 aand the server system 108. Examples of suitable communication mediainclude (but are not limited to) Ethernet cable, wireless datacommunication, power cables for use in power line communication (“PLC”),etc. Power line communication can include communicating signals viacables used for providing electric power from a utility company tobuildings in a geographic area. The data network 106 can be configuredusing any suitable network topology, such as (but not limited to) a meshnetwork (as mentioned above), a ring network, a star network, a busnetwork, etc. The data network 106 can include other nodes, shown asgateway devices 104 b-d.

In aspects disclosed herein, the gateway device 104 a can communicatewith both the HAN 100 and the rest of the data network 106 via a singleradio transceiver that implements more than one MAC interface. FIG. 2 isa block diagram illustrating an example of a gateway device 104 a with asingle transceiver device 220 implementing two MAC interfaces vianetwork interfaces 208, 210.

The gateway device 104 aa can include a processor 202. Non-limitingexamples of the processor 202 includes a microprocessor, anapplication-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a state machine, a fieldprogrammable gate array (FPGA) or other suitable processing device. Theprocessor 202 can include any number of processing devices, includingone. The processor 202 can be communicatively coupled to non-transitorycomputer-readable media, such as memory device 204. The processor 202can execute computer-executable program instructions and/or accessinformation stored in the memory device 204.

The memory device 204 can store instructions that, when executed by theprocessor 202, causes the processor 202 to perform operations describedherein. The memory device 204 may be a computer-readable medium such as(but not limited to) an electronic, optical, magnetic, or other storagedevice capable of providing a processor with computer-readableinstructions. Non-limiting examples of such optical, magnetic, or otherstorage devices include read-only (“ROM”) device(s), random-accessmemory (“RAM”) device(s), magnetic disk(s), magnetic tape(s) or othermagnetic storage, memory chip(s), an ASIC, configured processor(s),optical storage device(s), or any other medium from which a computerprocessor can read instructions. The instructions may compriseprocessor-specific instructions generated by a compiler and/or aninterpreter from code written in any suitable computer-programminglanguage. Non-limiting examples of suitable computer-programminglanguages include C, C++, C#, Visual Basic, Java, Python, Perl,JavaScript, ActionScript, and the like.

The gateway device 104 a can also include a bus 206. The bus 206 cancommunicatively couple one or more components of the gateway device 104a. Although the processor 202, the memory device 204, and the bus 206are respectively depicted in FIG. 2 as separate components incommunication with one another, other implementations are possible. Forexample, the processor 202 the memory device 204, and the bus 206 can berespective components of respective printed circuit boards or othersuitable devices that can be disposed in gateway device 104 a to storeand execute programming code.

The gateway device 104 a can also include a transceiver device 220communicatively coupled to the processor 202 and the memory device 204via the bus 206. Non-limiting examples of a transceiver device 220include an RF transceiver and other transceivers for wirelesslytransmitting and receiving signals. The HAN client devices 102a, 102 bcan also include transceiver devices for communication with the HANcontroller 103 or the gateway device 104 a. The transceiver device 220is capable of implementing at least two MAC interfaces to communicatewith the data network 106 and the HAN 100 via antennas 208, 210,respectively. While multiple antennas 208, 210 are shown forillustrative purposes, other aspects include a transceiver device 220that can communicate with the data network 106 and the HAN 100 with asingle antenna. The gateway device 104 a can communicate with the datanetwork 106 and the HAN 100 using a single transceiver device 220 viathe same or differing network protocols. For example, the gateway device104 a can communicate with a HAN 100 configured to use a CSMA protocol(e.g., ZigBee IEEE 802.15.4) via antenna 210 while the gateway device104 a can communicate with the data network 106 using the TSCH protocol(e.g., network protocol governed by IEEE 802.15.4e) via antenna 208. Insome aspects, the gateway device 104 a may communicate with both thedata network 106 and the HAN 100 even if the data network 106 and theHAN 100 use different frequencies. For example, gateway device 104 a maybe configured to send and receive signals with the rest of the datanetwork 106 at 920 Mhz while the gateway device 104 a may be configuredto send and receive signals with the HAN 100 at a frequency of 900 Mhz.

As discussed above, the gateway device 104 a is capable of implementingtwo MAC protocols using a single transceiver device 220 (e.g., a singleradio). FIG. 3 depicts an example protocol stack 300 for a single radiotransceiver device 220 that can implement two different MAC protocols.The protocol stack 300 includes, at the bottom layer, the physicalinterface (PHY) 310. The PHY 310 can define the specifications of thephysical transmission medium, such as the transceiver device 220. Thenext layer of the protocol stack 300 for the gateway device 104 aincludes at least two MAC layers 320 a, 320 b. MAC layer 320 a, forexample, defines the addressing and channel access protocols for a TSCHnetwork, allowing the transceiver device 220 to communicate with thedata network 106. Similarly, MAC layer 320 b can define the addressingand channel access protocols for a CSMA network, allowing thetransceiver device 220 to communicate with the HAN 100. The traffic forboth MAC layer 320 a and MAC layer 320 can be routed through a single IPlayer 330. For example, data from both a data network 106 and a HAN 100can be included on TSCH timeslots used by the data network 106. The datafor the data network 106 and CSMI data for the HAN 100 can becommunicated via transport layer such as UDP 340.

As mentioned above, the data network 106 may be an AMI mesh network,which may follow a TSCH communication protocol to communicate wirelessinformation within the network and outside the network. In the TSCHprotocol, devices within the network are synchronized on a current TSCHtimeslot. To communicate with the HAN 100 and the data network 106 usinga single transceiver 220, the gateway device 104 a can switch listeningperiods between the data network 106 and the HAN 100 during TSCHtimeslots, resulting in interleaved communication with the data network106 and the HAN 100. Thus, the gateway device 104 a can support both thedata network 106 (operating a TSCH protocol) and the HAN 100 (which mayor may not operate using the TSCH protocol) via a single transceiverdevice 220.

Each timeslot in the TSCH protocol is of a time duration of duration “T”which can be defined in milliseconds or other appropriate time unit. TheTSCH protocol also uses a multiple channel frequencies for communicationbetween devices in the network. A hopping pattern defines the channelused to communicate during each timeslot. FIG. 4 is a diagramillustrating timeslots and channel hopping pattern for the TSCHprotocol. FIG. 4 illustrates timeslots 411-415, 421-425, and 431-436,each with the same timeslot duration 430. Each slot frame 410 and 420includes seven timeslots. FIG. 4 also illustrates the hopping pattern440 (shown as hopping patterns 440 a-c). A hopping pattern defines achannel frequency or channel for each timeslot in the hopping pattern.For example, the hopping pattern 440 a may be channel 4, channel 6,channel 3, channel 5, channel 7, i.e., it may associate channel 4 withtimeslot 1, channel 6 with timeslot 2, channel 3 with timeslot 3,channel 5 with timeslot 4, and channel 7 with timeslot 5. In FIG. 4 thehopping pattern 440 a has a hopping pattern length of 5. The hoppingpattern repeats. The first illustrated iteration of the hopping pattern440 a contains timeslots 1-5 (411-415), the second iteration of thehopping pattern 440 b contains timeslots 6-10 (416-420), and the thirditeration of the hopping pattern 440 c contains timeslots 11-15(421-425). The number of timeslots in a hopping pattern is independentof the number of timeslots in a slot frame.

FIG. 5 illustrates a typical TSCH timeslot structure for timeslot 500.In this example, the time periods shown are exemplary and other valuesmay be used in other implementations (e.g., timeslot 500 is shown with aduration of 25 milliseconds, but other periods of a timeslot are alsopossible). In a TSCH timeslot structure, a node in the data network 106listens on a channel determined by the TSCH hopping pattern during afirst portion of the timeslot for the node's primary network. As shownin FIG. 5, after an RF settle period 502, the node can listen forreceive signals on a channel for a first period of time (shown as RXwait time 504). Typically, the duration of the RX wait time 504 isdependent on an expected transmit time duration. The transmit timeduration is defined by the IEEE 802.15.4-e TSCH specification. If thenode receives a message prior to the expiration of the RX wait time 504,then the node can proceed to receive the rest of the message and processthe received message. However, if the node does not receive a messageprior to the expiration of the RX wait time 504, then the node maydetermine that it will not receive a communication from another node onthe primary network during the present timeslot. In a typical timeslotstructure the remainder of the timeslot 500 may be idle/unused.

In certain aspects, the gateway device 104 a can interleave data fromtwo or more network protocols by receiving the data from a secondarynetwork (e.g., the HAN 100) during the unused time periods of a TSCHtimeslot used with the primary network. FIGS. 6 and 7 illustrate twoaspects of a TSCH timeslot where a gateway device receives informationfrom a secondary network in the unused portions of the timeslot. FIG. 6shows a timeslot 600 with an RF settle period 602 and an RX wait period604, and a receive period 606. Similar to the timeslot 500 shown in FIG.5, during the RX wait period 604, the gateway device 104 a can listenfor communication on a channel determined by the hopping pattern for thenode's primary network (e.g., the data network 106). If the gatewaydevice receives the beginning of a message from a node on the primarynetwork during the RX wait period 604, the gateway device 104 a cancontinue to receive the primary network message during the receiveperiod 606 (e.g., for the duration of the timeslot 600). If the gatewaydevice 104 a does not receive a message from the data network 106 priorto the expiration of the RX wait period 604, then the gateway device 104a may begin to listen for a communication from a node in the secondarynetwork (e.g., the HAN 100) using the same channel or may move to adifferent channel. If communication from the secondary network isreceived, the gateway device 104 a can receive the message from thesecondary network during the receive period 606 (e.g., for the remainingduration of the timeslot 600).

FIG. 7 depicts a similar, but alternate aspect for a TSCH timeslot 700where a gateway device receives information from a secondary networkduring the unused periods of the timeslot 700. Timeslot 700 can includea first RX settle period 702, and RX wait period 704, a second RF settleperiod 706, and a receive period 708. The timeslot shown in FIG. 7 canfunction similar to the timeslot shown in FIG. 6—allowing the gatewaydevice 104 a to receive communications from the primary network if thegateway device 104 a detected a message during the RX wait period 704 orto receive communications from the secondary network if the gatewaydevice 104 a did not detect a message during the RX wait period 704. Thesecond RF settle period 706 can provide better accuracy in messagedetection by providing a buffer between the RX wait period 704 andreceive period 708. For example, the second RF settle period 706 mayprovide better accuracy if the HAN 100 and the data network 106 operateon different frequencies.

While FIGS. 6 and 7 are discussed above with reference to the datanetwork 106, gateway device 104 a, and HAN 100, the dual MAC timeslotstructure shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 can be used in any node in a TSCHnetwork configured to also carry data from a secondary network. Forexample, any node in a data network 106 can incorporate a dual MACtransceiver device 220 as shown in FIG. 2, allowing the node to includedata from a secondary network in unused time periods in timeslots of aprimary network.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating an example method 800 forcommunicating data from a HAN 100 within unused portions of TSCHtimeslots used for communication with a data network 106. Forillustrative purposes, the method 800 is described with reference to thesystem implementations depicted in FIGS. 1-2 and with regards to theTSCH timeslot illustrations shown in FIGS. 6-7. Other implementations,however, are possible.

The method 800 involves determining, during a first portion of atimeslot of a TSCH protocol, whether a node received a portion of afirst data network message that requires processing by the node from adata network communicating using the TSCH protocol, as shown in block810. In some aspects, the node can include the gateway device 104 a, andthe processor 202 can execute instructions in the memory device 204 toanalyze data being received from the data network 106. The data network106 can include an AMI mesh network (e.g., gateway devices 104 a-d) thatroutes communication between the server system 108 and the gatewaydevice 104 a. The first portion of the timeslot includes the RX waitperiods 604, 704 in timeslots 600, 700, respectively. In some aspects,the processor 202 can determine whether a message from the data network106 that requires processing by the gateway device 104 a was received byanalyzing the packet header information carried by wireless signalsreceived at the antenna 208. For example, the processor 202 can analyzeheader information in the UDP layer 340 to determine if received signalsare broadcast from the data network 106 or addressed to the gatewaydevice 104 a. In some aspects, the node may not receive messages that itneeds to process during the first portion of the timeslot. In responseto determining that the portion of the data network message was notreceived, the node may determine, during a second portion of thetimeslot, whether the node received a portion of a first home areanetwork message that requires processing by the node from a home areanetwork communicating using a secondary protocol, as shown in block 820.For example, in response to not receiving any messages from the datanetwork 106, the processor 202 in the gateway device 104 a may switchfrom listening for communications on a first MAC protocol to listeningfor communication from a second MAC protocol. The processor 202 canexecute instructions in the memory device 204 to instruct thetransceiver device 220 to listen for communication from the HAN 100 andto analyze data being received from the HAN 100 during the receiveperiods 606, 708 in timeslots 600, 700, respectively. The HAN 100 can beconfigured for communicating information regarding resources (e.g.,resources in a power distribution system) consumed at a geographicalarea serviced by the HAN 100.

The secondary network protocol (e.g., the protocol being used forcommunication within the HAN 100) may be the same as or different fromthe TSCH network protocol being used by the data network 106. Forexample, the secondary network protocol may include another TSCHprotocol. The secondary network protocol can also include a CSMAprotocol, such as 802.15.4 Zigbee. Other protocols are also possible.Additionally, the secondary network protocol, and correspondingly theHAN 100, can operate using the same or different frequencies than thedata network 106. In one example, the data network 106 operates on a 920MHz frequency band while the HAN 100 operates on a 900 Mhz band.

In some aspects, the gateway device 104 a can maintain synchronizationof the clocks of the two different network protocols, even if thenetwork protocols operate on differing frequencies. For example, theprocessor 202 can calculate the accuracy of a clock signal received fromthe data network 106 and the accuracy of a second clock signal receivedfrom the HAN 100 and compare the timing of the two clock signals. If thetiming of the two clock signals indicates that the clocks are drifting,the processor 202 can configure the transceiver device 220 to compensatefor the un-synchronized clocks.

In some aspects, the node may determine that the node received a portionof a HAN message on the protocol used by the HAN. For example, the nodemay determine, by analyzing packet header information in incomingsignals, that the received packet originated from the HAN 100. Inresponse to determining that the node received the portion of the HANmessage, the node can proceed to receive the remainder of the HANmessage, as shown in block 830. For example, the gateway device 104 a,upon determining that the node received a portion of a message from theHAN 100, can continue to receive and process the message during thereceive periods 606, 708 in timeslots 600, 700 respectively.

The node can continue receiving a message from the secondary network(e.g., from the network used by the HAN 100) until the message iscomplete or one or more trigger conditions occur. In response to one ormore trigger conditions, the node can then switch back to listening forcommunication from the data network to determine whether the nodereceived a data network message, as shown in block 840. For example, inresponse to a trigger condition, the processor 202 can instruct thetransceiver device 220 to listen for communication from the data network106.

Trigger conditions can include any condition that causes the gatewaydevice 104 a to switch MAC protocols and listen for communication fromthe data network 106. For example, the trigger condition can include thebeginning of a new timeslot or the start of an RX period of a newtimeslot. The gateway device 104 a can completely receive the messagefrom the HAN 100 during the portion of a TSCH timeslot or at theconclusion of a TSCH timeslot. As timeslots 600, 700 follow a repeatingpattern in a TSCH network, the beginning of a subsequent timeslot willcontain RX receive periods 604/704, during which the gateway device 104a can return to listening for communication from the data network 106.

Another trigger condition can include the start of a guaranteedtimeslot. Communication from the primary network used by the datanetwork 106 can take priority over communication from the secondarynetwork used by the HAN 100. Priority communications within the datanetwork 106 can be provided during guaranteed timeslots. A guaranteedtimeslot may be a predefined TSCH timeslot during which nodes of thedata network 106 can communicate control and maintenance information. Aguaranteed timeslot may be defined as a particular timeslot within aslot frame, a timeslot, or any other defined series of timeslots. At thestart of a guaranteed timeslot, the gateway device 104 a may interruptthe ongoing transmission of the message from the HAN 100, allowing thegateway device 104 a to listen for communication from the data network106 during the guaranteed timeslot. For example, the gateway device 104a can listen for a beacon transmitted by a node in the data network 106.A beacon can include a message that is transmitted throughout the nodesof the data network 106 (e.g., throughout gateway devices 104 a-d) thatthe nodes use for synchronization.

FIGS. 9 and 10 depict example timing diagrams of sequences of TSCHtimeslots 600 and example scenarios for trigger conditions that resultin the gateway device 104 a switching from receiving communication froma HAN 100 to listening for communication from the data network 106.Specifically, FIG. 9 depicts switching from receiving a message on asecondary network back to listening for communication on a primarynetwork based on the start of a new timeslot or an RX period of a newtimeslot. In this example, the trigger condition can include receiving acomplete message from the primary network and starting a new timeslot.FIG. 9 includes a sequence of TSCH timeslots 902, 904, 906, 908, 910,and 912. Each timeslot includes an RX wait period 903, 905, 907, 909,911, 913, respectively, as the period during which the gateway device104 a listens for communication from the data network 106. In theexample shown in FIG. 9, the data network receives no messages from thedata network 106 that the gateway device 104 a is required to processduring the RX wait period 903 (the first portion of time for the firsttimeslot 903). In response, the gateway device 104 a switches tolistening for communication from the HAN 100 during the second portionof the first timeslot 902. As shown in FIG. 9, the gateway device 104 areceives a message from the secondary network (shown as secondarymessage 920). The gateway device 104 a finishes receiving the message ata time during the second timeslot 904. Given that transmission of thesecondary message 920 from the HAN 100 is complete, the gateway device904 remains idle until the start of the third timeslot 906.

The start of an RX period of the third timeslot 906, in this example,corresponds to the trigger condition indicating that the gateway device104 a switch to listening for a message from the primary network (e.g.,the data network 106). As shown in the example, the gateway device 104 amay receive a message from the primary network (shown as primary message922) during the RX wait period 907. The gateway device 104 a receivesthe complete message during a portion of the fourth timeslot 908. At thebeginning of the fifth timeslot 910, the process repeats, resulting inthe gateway device 104 a listening for a message from the primarynetwork. In the example, the gateway device 104 a receives no messagefrom the primary network during the RX wait period 911, and thusswitches to listening for a secondary message from the secondary network(e.g., the HAN 100). The gateway device 104 a may receive a secondsecondary message 924 during the fifth timeslot 910 and the duration ofthe sixth timeslot 912.

The messages from the primary network and the secondary network can varyin length, as shown by secondary receive messages 920, 924 and theprimary message 922. Thus, even though each timeslot will contain a newRX wait period (during which the gateway device 104 a can switch back tolistening for messages from the data network 106), the gateway device104 a may continue receiving the message from the HAN 100 until thecomplete secondary message is received, as shown in FIG. 9. However,receipt of the message from the HAN 100 may be interrupted due to thestart of a guaranteed timeslot.

FIG. 10 depicts a timing diagram where the gateway device 104 a switchesfrom receiving a message on a secondary network to listening formessages on a primary network based on the trigger condition of thestart of a guaranteed timeslot. FIG. 10 depicts a sequence of timeslots1001, 1004, 1006, 1008, 1010, and 1112, each of which include RX waitperiods 1003, 1005, 1007, 1009, 1011, and 1013, respectively. In thisexample, the third timeslot 1006 is a guaranteed timeslot. FIG. 9further illustrates that the gateway device 104 a receives a primarymessage 1020 at the first RX wait period 1003 during the first timeslot1002 (e.g., a message from the data network 106). The gateway device 104a completes receipt of the primary message 1020 near the end of thefirst timeslot 1002. During the second RX wait period 1005 (at the startof the second timeslot 1004), the gateway device 104 a does not receiveany message from the data network 106. Thus, as described above, thegateway device 104 a switches to listen for messages from the secondarynetwork (e.g., the HAN 100). In this example, the gateway device 104 adetects a secondary message 1022 a from the HAN 100 during a portion ofthe second timeslot 1004. In response, the gateway device 104 a receivesthe secondary message 1022 a from the secondary network. However, thesecondary message 1022 a may not be completely received. In thisexample, the third timeslot 1006 is a guaranteed timeslot. The start ofthe guaranteed timeslot causes the gateway device 104 a to interruptreceipt of the secondary message 1022 a to listen for communication fromthe primary network. Entering the RX wait period of 1007 of the thirdtimeslot 1006 (the guaranteed timeslot), the gateway device 104 a may ormay not receive a primary message 1024. If the gateway device 104 areceives the primary message 1024, and if the gateway device 104 acompletes receipt of the primary message 1024, the process repeats atthe fourth timeslot 1008. During the RX wait period 1009 (the RX waitperiod for the fourth timeslot 1008), the gateway device 104 a listensfor additional communication from the primary network. In this example,no additional communication is received, resulting in the gateway device104 a switching to listen for messages from the secondary network. Thegateway device 104 a receives message 1022 b during the second portionof the timeslot 1008. The message 1022 b is received for a remainingduration of the timeslot 1008, through the timeslot 1010, and through aportion of the timeslot 1012. Since communication of the secondarymessage 1022 a was interrupted due to the guaranteed timeslot, thesecondary message 1022 b may be a repeat communication of secondarymessage 1022 a from the secondary network.

FIG. 11 is an alternate flowchart illustrating another aspect for amethod 1100 for communicating data from a HAN 100 within unused portionsof TSCH timeslots used for communication with a data network 106. Forillustrative purposes, the method 1100 is described with reference tothe system implementations depicted in FIGS. 1-2 and with regards to theTSCH timeslot illustrations shown in FIGS. 6-7. Other implementations,however, are possible.

The method 1100 involves listening, during a first portion of a firsttimeslot of a TSCH protocol, for communication from a primary network ona first channel of the TSCH protocol, as shown in block 1110. Forexample, a gateway device 104 a can listen for communication from othernodes in the data network 106 during an RX wait period 604, 704. Acommunication from the primary network can include one or more messagesfrom the data network 106 that the gateway device 104 a is required toprocess. For example, a gateway device 104 a may be required to processcommunication broadcast from the data network 106 and communicationaddressed specifically to the gateway device 104 a.

The method 1100 further involves listening, upon expiration of the firsttimeslot without receiving a portion of the communication that requiresprocessing by the node, for a communication from a secondary networkduring a second portion of the timeslot, as shown in block 1120. Forexample, the secondary network may include the HAN 100 operating on aCSMA protocol. After expiration of the RX wait period 604, 704, thegateway device 104 a may switch to listening for communication from theHAN 100 during the receive period 606, 706.

Upon receiving a portion of the communication from the secondary networkthat requires processing by the node, the node can receive the remainderof the second communication for a duration of the second communicationor until the start of a guaranteed timeslot, as shown in block 1130. Forexample, as discussed above with respect to FIG. 9, the gateway device104 a can continue receiving the secondary message 920 until thesecondary message 920 is completely received. Alternatively, asdiscussed above with respect to FIG. 10, the receipt of the secondarymessage 1022 a from HAN 100 can be interrupted at the start of asubsequent time slot, for example in the case of a guaranteed timeslot1006.

During the first portion of a subsequent timeslot of the TSCH protocol,the node may switch to listening for a communication from the primarynetwork on a second channel, as shown in block 1140. For example, oncethe secondary message 920 is completely received by the gateway device104 a, or once receipt of the secondary message 1022 a is interrupteddue to the start of guaranteed timeslot 1006, the gateway device 104 acan return to listening for communications from the data network 106during the next RX wait period. Because the gateway device 104 aoperates using a TSCH protocol, the frequencies of the first channel andthe second channel may be different.

In some aspects, the gateway device 104 may continue to listen forcommunication from the data network 106 that the gateway device 104 isrequired to process even after expiration of the first portion of thetimeslot (e.g., after expiration of RX wait periods 604, 704). Forexample, nodes (gateway device 104 a-d) in the data network 106 mayoperate on battery power. To improve battery efficiency and decreaseoverall power consumption, the nodes in the data network 106 may beconfigured to communicate a series of messages within multiple TSCHtimeslots. The series of timeslots during which nodes, which may bebattery powered, communicate may be predefined during initialconfiguration of the data network 106. The duration of the series oftimeslots may be referred to as a battery powered window. In thisaspect, upon the start of a battery powered window, the gateway device104 a may listen for messages the gateway device 104 a is required toprocess for multiple timeslots defining the battery powered window. Uponexpiration of the battery powered window, the gateway device 104 a mayreturn to switching listening periods between the first network and thesecond network as discussed above with regards to FIGS. 8-10.

While the present subject matter has been described in detail withrespect to specific aspects thereof, it will be appreciated that thoseskilled in the art, upon attaining an understanding of the foregoing,may readily produce alterations to, variations of, and equivalents tosuch aspects. Accordingly, it should be understood that the presentdisclosure has been presented for purposes of example rather thanlimitation and does not preclude inclusion of such modifications,variations, and/or additions to the present subject matter as would bereadily apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art.

What is claimed is:
 1. A gateway device comprising: a single transceiverdevice configured to communicate with a primary network using a timeslotted channel hopping protocol and with a secondary network using aCSMA protocol, wherein the single transceiver device includes a firstMAC layer for communicating using the time slotted channel hoppingprotocol, and a second MAC layer for communicating using the CSMAprotocol; the gateway device operable to: at a beginning of a firsttimeslot of the time slotted channel hopping protocol, listening on theprimary network using the first MAC layer and a first channel, whereinthe first channel is based on a hopping pattern for the time slottedchannel hopping protocol; when no message from the primary network isreceived by the first MAC layer during a receive time period of thefirst timeslot, then listening on the secondary network using the secondMAC layer during a portion of the first timeslot following the receivetime period; when the second MAC layer is receiving a message from thesecondary network, continuing to receive the message from the secondarynetwork during a remainder of the first timeslot following the receivetime period; and at a beginning of a second timeslot subsequent to thefirst timeslot of the time slotted channel hopping protocol, listeningon the primary network using the first MAC layer and a second channel,wherein the second channel is based on the hopping pattern for the timeslotted channel hopping protocol.
 2. The gateway device of claim 1,wherein receipt of the message from the secondary network is completedduring the first timeslot, and wherein the second timeslot is temporallyadjacent to the first timeslot.
 3. The gateway device of claim 1,wherein the second MAC layer continues receiving the message from thesecondary network beyond the first timeslot, and wherein at least onetimeslot occurs between the first timeslot and the second timeslot. 4.The gateway device of claim 1, wherein in response to a triggercondition, the gateway device interrupts receipt of the message from thesecondary network to listen on the primary network at the beginning ofthe second timeslot.
 5. The gateway device of claim 4, wherein thetrigger condition includes the second timeslot being a guaranteed timeslot.
 6. The gateway device of claim 1, wherein listening on thesecondary network using the second MAC layer includes using a frequencyother than a frequency corresponding to the first channel.
 7. Thegateway device of claim 1, wherein the gateway device further includes ametering device that measures energy consumption and transmits energyconsumption information to a central system via the first MAC layer. 8.A method comprising: at a beginning of a first timeslot of a timeslotted channel hopping protocol, listening on a primary network using afirst MAC layer and a first channel, wherein the first MAC layersupports the time slotted channel hopping protocol and the first channelis based on a hopping pattern for the time slotted channel hoppingprotocol; when the first MAC layer is not receiving a message from theprimary network during a receive time period of the first timeslot, thenlistening on a secondary network using a second MAC layer during aportion of the first timeslot following the receive time period, whereinthe second MAC layer supports a wireless protocol that does not use thetime slotted channel hopping protocol; when the second MAC layer isreceiving a message from the secondary network during the portion of thefirst timeslot following the receive time period, continuing to receivethe message from the secondary network for a remainder of the firsttimeslot; and at a beginning of a second timeslot subsequent to thefirst timeslot of the time slotted channel hopping protocol, listeningon the primary network using the first MAC layer and a second channel,wherein the second channel is based on the hopping pattern for the timeslotted channel hopping protocol.
 9. The method of claim 8, wherein thefirst timeslot includes the receive time period and a settle periodfollowing the receive time period, and the portion of the first timeslotfollowing the receive time period follows the settle period.
 10. Themethod of claim 9, wherein listening on the secondary network using thesecond MAC layer includes using a frequency other than a frequencycorresponding to the first channel.
 11. The method of claim 8, furthercomprising: when the first MAC layer is receiving a message from theprimary network during the receive time period of the first timeslot,then continuing to receive the message using the first MAC layer duringthe portion of the first timeslot following the receive time period. 12.The method of claim 8, wherein receipt of the message from the secondarynetwork is completed during the first timeslot, and wherein the secondtimeslot is temporally adjacent to the first timeslot.
 13. The method ofclaim 8, wherein the second MAC layer continues receiving the messagefrom the secondary network beyond the first timeslot, and wherein atleast one timeslot occurs between the first timeslot and the secondtimeslot.
 14. The method of claim 8, wherein in response to a triggercondition, interrupting receipt of the message from the secondarynetwork to listen on the primary network at the beginning of the secondtimeslot.
 15. The method of claim 14, wherein the trigger conditionincludes the second timeslot being a guaranteed time slot.
 16. A gatewaydevice, comprising: a protocol stack that includes a single PHY layer, afirst MAC layer for communicating using a time slotted channel hoppingprotocol and a second MAC layer for communicating using a CSMA protocol,a single IP layer, and a single transport layer; the gateway deviceoperable to: listening on a primary network using the first MAC layerand a first channel for at least a receive time period of a firsttimeslot, wherein the first channel is based on a hopping pattern forthe time slotted channel hopping protocol; when the receive time periodexpires without the first MAC layer receiving a message from the primarynetwork, then listening on a secondary network using the second MAClayer during a portion of the first timeslot following the receive timeperiod; when the second MAC layer is receiving a message from thesecondary network, continuing to receive the message from the secondarynetwork during a remainder of the first timeslot following the receivetime period; and at a beginning of a second timeslot subsequent to thefirst timeslot of the time slotted channel hopping protocol, listeningon the primary network using the first MAC layer and a second channel,wherein the second channel is based on the hopping pattern for the timeslotted channel hopping protocol.
 17. The gateway device of claim 16,wherein receipt of the message from the secondary network is completedduring the first timeslot, and wherein the second timeslot is temporallyadjacent to the first timeslot.
 18. The gateway device of claim 16,wherein the second MAC layer continues receiving the message from thesecondary network beyond the first timeslot, and wherein at least onetimeslot occurs between the first timeslot and the second timeslot. 19.The gateway device of claim 16, wherein in response to a triggercondition, the gateway device interrupts receipt of the message from thesecondary network to listen on the primary network at the beginning ofthe second timeslot.
 20. The gateway device of claim 19, wherein thetrigger condition includes the second timeslot being a guaranteed timeslot.
 21. The gateway device of claim 16, wherein listening on thesecondary network using the second MAC layer includes using a frequencyother than a frequency corresponding to the first channel.